Term 1

Fritz Marth was elected to the U.S. Soccer Board of Directors in 2024 as a representative from the Adult Council and is the current Vice President of United States Adult Soccer Association. As a long serving-member of the soccer community he has previously served as U.S. Adult Soccer’s National Cups Commissioner and as the Regional Director of U.S. Adult Soccer’s Region 1. He also continues to be active at the local level with the Cosmopolitan Soccer League in Eastern New York and New Jersey, and as a member and director of his life-long club, Hoboken F.C. 1912.

Professionally, Fritz is a licensed Professional Engineer and consultant to the construction industry on matters of project delay and disruption. He received a bachelor’s and a master’s degree in civil engineering from Drexel University, and as a court-recognized recognized expert in his field he provides expert opinions and testimony nationwide on construction disputes.

Term 5

President of the United States Adult Soccer Association since 2014, John Motta has been a long-serving member of the soccer community in the United States. Motta previously served as New Hampshire Soccer Association from 1988-1998, and as U.S. Soccer Vice President from 1998-2000.

Term 1

John Collins has an international sports law practice in which he has represented sports organizations, athletes, coaches and agents in 15 different sports in a wide variety of matters. John has participated at all levels of soccer, including FIFA, CONCACAF, professional leagues, professional clubs, national associations, players and coaches.

He was General Counsel for U.S. Soccer from 1997 to 2001 and also a member of the FIFA Legal Committee and the FIFA Task Force Revision of Statutes. Additionally, he was an Assistant U.S. Attorney in Chicago where he prosecuted a wide array of criminal cases.

John has lectured extensively on sports law and ethics. He taught sports law and legal ethics at the University of Chicago Law School and sports ethics at Loyola University. He is Chair of the National Board of Advisors of the National Sports Law Institute.

Term 2

A member of the U.S. Para 7-a-side National Team from 2006-2016, Chris Ahrens was a member of the U.S. team that qualified for the London 2012 Paralympic Games. Ahrens is an Adapted Physical Education Teacher for the San Diego Unified School District and head coach at Crusaders Soccer Club.

Term 1

Dr. Nelson Akwari joined the U.S. Soccer Board of Directors and U.S. Soccer Athletes Council in December 2021. He represented U.S. Soccer as a captain of the U-17, U-20, and U-23 national teams, and he played soccer professionally for 10 years (Major League Soccer, United Soccer League). Dr. Akwari played collegiately at the University of California, Los Angeles where he earned his PhD in Materials Science and Engineering.

Dr. Akwari works at Boeing as the Site Leader and Operations Superintendent for the Interiors Responsibility Center South Carolina. He serves on various Executive Boards focused on STEM based educational initiatives, health and wellness, and economic community development. Dr. Akwari has experience as a youth soccer coach, mentor, and consultant.

Term 1

Sean Boyle was named to the Board of Directors for the U.S. Soccer Federation on December 3rd, 2021. Sean, comes to Board as a representative on the Federations Athletes’ Council, as well as a member of the Athletes’ Advisory Committee within the USOPC.

As an athlete Sean has represented the United States since 2016 on the U.S. Paralympic Soccer Team. He competed in the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games as well as the 2019 IFCPF World Championships held in Sevilla, Spain. He received a bronze medal at the Para Pan American 2019 games held in Lima, Peru and was voted U.S. Soccer’s Player of the Year with a disability in 2017.

Outside of soccer Sean worked at Mastercard on the Financial Inclusion Product Team before leaving in 2022 to pursue a graduate degree at the University of Notre Dame.

Term 1

Whitney Engen joined the U.S. Soccer Board of Directors in March of 2023. Whitney comes to the Board as a representative on the Federation’s Athletes’ Council. Whitney played for the USWNT from 2010 to 2016 where she won the World Cup (2015) and played in the Olympics (2016), During her professional career she played for club teams in the U.S., England and Sweden. Whitney played collegiately for the University of North Carolina where she won three national championships. Whitney works as a corporate attorney at Moore and Van Allen PLLC where her practice is focused on representing public and private companies in a variety of corporate transactions, including mergers and acquisitions, private equity transactions, business entity formation, securities offerings and compliance, financing transactions, and corporate reorganizations.

Term 1

Cassidy Leake is a current member of the US Soccer Paralympic (CP) Women's soccer team and an IFCPF World Cup gold medalist. She is a dedicated athlete and advocate for equal opportunity in the disability soccer community, and has been recognized for her leadership both on and off the field. Cassidy's commitment to the sport extends beyond her playing career; she has been voted to the US Soccer Athlete's Council and elected as Vice Chair of the US Soccer Federation Board of Directors. She has actively championed for greater recognition, resources, and support for soccer athletes with disabilities, and continues to demonstrate her unwavering dedication to advancing the sport at both national and global levels.

Term 1

Lori Lindsey was a member of the USWNT that competed in the 2011 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Germany, and was an alternate for the 2012 Olympic Games in London. Lindsey worked her way up to the full USWNT after being a member of the U.S. U-16, U-17 and U-21 Women’s National Teams, including the U-21 team that won the 2001 Nordic Cup in Norway. Lindsey is currently a performance coach at Lori Lindsey Performance, and also served as a commentator for National Women’s Soccer League games on go90 and the NWSL website in 2018.

Term 1

Danielle played for the USWNT from 2000-2005. She played professionally for the Carolina Courage of the WUSA and for Olympique Lyonnais, and collegiately for Santa Clara University.

Danielle previously was a member of the Athlete Council and was a member of the U.S. Soccer Board of Directors from 2012-2014. She is currently a board member of the U.S. Soccer Foundation and the Bay Area Women's Sports Initiative. She is a Director at Santa Clara University and a television analyst for Fox Sports, NBC and the San Jose Earthquakes. She has a master’s degree in Sports Administration from Northwestern University.”

Term 1

Juan Uro, a Partner at Ernst & Young with deep expertise in corporate strategy, growth strategy, capital allocation, operating model, operational improvement, governance and organizational design was elected as an Independent Director to the U.S. Soccer Board of Directors during the 2020 National Council Meeting. He specializes in advising CEOs, Boards, CFOs and other C-suite executives on strategy, corporate finance, operations issues. He has over 20 years of management consulting experience with companies across many sectors (media, financial services, consumer products and healthcare) and geographies (North America, Europe, Asia, and Latin America).

Term 1

Financial executive Mark Johnson was appointed as an Independent Director on the U.S. Soccer Board of Directors.

Johnson is the Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Astra Capital Management, a Washington D.C.-based private equity firm focused on transformational growth investments in the communication and technology services sectors. Prior to Astra, Mr. Johnson was a Managing Director and Global Partner at the Carlyle Group where he served in the US buyout fund from 2004-2014. He was also an investment professional at several leading finance and investment firms including the Blackstone Group, JH Whitney & Co., and Merrill Lynch.

Throughout his career, Johnson has provided effective leadership and prudent governance to businesses and non-profit organizations with high growth, business transformation and the continued pursuit of excellence as their aims. These efforts have included service on the Boards of several public, private, education and government entities, including SAIC Corporation, Syniverse Technologies, the Board of Directors of the Princeton University Endowment, and the Obama-Biden 2008 Presidential transition team.

Johnson is currently a member of the Board of Directors of Communication Technology Services, Logix Fiber Networks, the Chapter of the Washington National Cathedral, and the host committee for the Navy Seal Foundation NYC Benefit.

He is a graduate of Princeton University, where as a student-athlete he earned an AB degree in Economics and won two NCAA Lacrosse championships and has an MBA from the Harvard Business School.

Johnson lives in Washington D.C. with his wife and 2 daughters and is a proud Girls’ Soccer Dad.

Term 2

Patti Hart has served as Chief Executive Officer of International Game Technology since April 2009. Before joining IGT, she was the Chairman and CEO of Pinnacle Systems Inc. from 2004 to 2005, and of Excite@Home Inc. from 2001 to 2002. Hart was previously Chairman and CEO of Telocity, Inc. and held various executive positions at the Sprint Corporation from 1986 to 1999, including President and COO of Sprint’s Long Distance Division. She was named on Fortune’s inaugural list of “Most Powerful Women” in 1998.

Term 1

Jessica Berman is the Commissioner of the National Women’s Soccer League where she oversees all operations of the league with a focus on supporting players on and off the pitch, working with NWSL clubs to continue to build on the positive momentum of the league’s growing audience, and collaborating with NWSL partners to create the most engaging and entertaining fan experience.

Berman joined the NWSL after two and a half years serving as deputy commissioner and executive vice president of business affairs at the National Lacrosse League. During her time with the NLL, Berman’s responsibilities included overseeing team services, operations, marketing and communications, broadcast and content, community engagement, human resources, and league governance.

Prior to her time with the NLL, Berman spent 13 years with the National Hockey League, first serving as vice president and deputy general counsel for the organization before becoming vice president of community development, culture and growth and executive director of the NHL Foundation.

A graduate of the Fordham University School of Law, Berman also worked as an associate at Proskauer Rose LLP in the labor and employment sector where she represented several employers in collective bargaining negotiations, arbitrations, mediations and litigations, and worked on pro bono cases involving domestic violence, sexual assault and military matters.

Berman completed her undergraduate studies at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Michigan, graduating with a degree in Sports Management and Communications. A Brooklyn, New York native, Berman resides in Larchmont, New York, with her two sons and two rescue dogs.

Term 13

Don Garber was named Commissioner of Major League Soccer in 1999. During his tenure, MLS has expanded from 10 to 27 clubs, added 23 new owners and secured long-term broadcast agreements with major domestic and international broadcasters. Garber has also led efforts to develop soccer stadiums across the United States with more soccer venues due to open in the next few years. In 2002, Garber created Soccer United Marketing (SUM), an affiliate of MLS and one of the world’s leading commercial and media soccer companies. SUM represents a wide variety of soccer properties, including Concacaf, the United States Soccer Federation and the Mexican Soccer Federation. Prior to joining MLS, Garber spent 16 years in a variety of sales, marketing, programming and event management positions at the National Football League. In 1996, he launched NFL International, a division that was responsible for all aspects of the NFL’s business outside the United States.

Term 1

Amanda Vandervort was named President of the USL Super League in October of 2022. Vandervort joined the USL after serving as Chief Women’s Football Officer of FIFPRO, the global player’s association based in Amsterdam, where she directed strategy, policy, and stakeholder relations. She published Raising Our Game, a women’s football report detailing global industry standards and a player-centric approach to improving the game. Prior, she spent nearly a decade at Major League Soccer as Vice President of Social Media and CRM, then as Vice President of Fan Engagement. She was recognized as a Sports Business Journal Game Changer in 2016.

Vandervort was a member of the United Soccer Coaches Board of Directors for 10 years and in 2016 became the fifth female President in the Association’s 75-year history. She was the Head Women's Soccer Coach at New York University for four years, and before that, the Graduate Assistant at The College of New Jersey. Vandervort holds her United Soccer Coaches Premier Diploma and a B Coaching License from the U.S. Soccer Federation.

She spent four years as an instructor in FIFA Women’s Football Development, leading marketing and communications workshops in South Asia, the Caribbean and Africa. Vandervort was a FIFA Women’s Leadership Development Program mentor. She currently serves on the boards of several global non-profit organizations dedicated to transforming community through soccer.

Term 1

Mike Cullina joined the US Club Soccer staff on July 1, 2021 and assumed the CEO/Executive Director position on January 1, 2022. Cullina recently concluded a two-year term as the At-Large Representative on U.S. Soccer’s Board of Directors and initially joined US Club Soccer’s Board of Directors in 2015 prior to being appointed as Chairperson in 2018.

Cullina has wide-ranging business and technical experience as a board member, league director, club executive director, club technical director, club director of coaching, A-licensed coach, grassroots coaching education instructor and referee.

Most recently, Cullina served as Executive Director of Prince William Soccer Club (PWSI) and Virginia Development Academy, and President of the Virginia Premier Soccer League.

Term 1

Rick Buiteweg was elected to the U.S. Soccer Board of Directors in 2024 as a representative from the Youth Council and is the current member of AYSO Board of Directors. He has served in AYSO in several functions including leveraging his technical background to assist in various initiatives. During the 20+ years of involvement with AYSO he has held many roles and leadership positions including being the Section Director for AYSO Section 8 before joining the National Board.

Professionally, Rick is an IT professional designing, developing, and implementing large scale and complex systems. This work has been across a variety of business processes and needs and included both technical and project management leadership roles. He has over 39 years of IT experience with the past 31 years being at Ford.  Currently he is working in an architectural role supporting the development and delivery of connectivity services for Ford Vehicles. He received bachelor’s degrees in Computer Science and Business Administration from Central Michigan University and a Juris Doctorate from Wayne State University.

Term 1

Rincon joined the U.S. Soccer Board of Directors in July 2024, following her election as US Youth Soccer chair. Also in July, Rincon was voted chair of U.S. Soccer’s Youth Council, having previously served as commissioner on the council. She has been part of the US Youth Soccer Board of Directors since July 2021, previously serving as the organization’s Treasurer.

Rincon, a Dallas-area CPA and business owner, began playing soccer at age 8, ultimately moving on to a standout career as a student-athlete at Texas Tech University.

She currently plays on an adult women’s team, coaches her son’s youth team, and is an assistant coach at a North Texas high school.

Term 1

His soccer resume spans more than four decades, and his accolades as a player include induction into the Chicago Sockers and Rockford University halls of fame. Mateus also played professional soccer in the NPSL.

Mateus has just as long coaching career. His college head coaching credits include five years at National Louis University (Chicago), followed by seven years at Benedictine University (Lisle, Ill.) and three years at Rockford University (Rockford, Ill). Recently, he was enshrined in the Benedictine University Coaching Hall of Fame.

Mateus’ grassroots and club coaching experiences, dates back over 40 years. Having coached for Chicago Sockers, Chicago Magic, Chicago Fire DA, and Rockford Raptors. He was tabbed Illinois Youth Soccer Competitive Coach of the Year in 2005, and was awarded an Illinois Youth Soccer Lifetime Achievement Award in 2020.

Mateus has vast experience with the ODP, and US Soccer Youth National Teams. Mateus has been involved in coaching or directing Illinois ODP, for 40 years. He also served as assistant coach to the U-14 and U-17 Boys National Teams.

One of Mateus’ great passions is being a USSF coaching educator, instructing candidates in getting their A, B, and C licensing.

Mateus has been the general manager of Mercyhealth Sportscore 2 (Loves Park, Ill.) since 1999.